At the beginning of the summer, Rare Books received a bequest of thirteen antiquarian works from the personal collection of Msgr. John F. Wippel, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy [1]. The collection includes eight works printed before or during the year 1500 and features titles by Thomas Aquinas, Augustine, Peter Lombard, Duns Scotus, Anselm, and others. As such, Msgr. Wippel’s books represent a significant and exciting addition to Rare Books’ existing collection of incunabula and other early printed works.
Msgr. Wippel sought to understand and teach “the historical Aquinas”–that is, “to understand more precisely and accurately what Aquinas himself actually said and thought,” including the ways in which his thinking evolved over the course of his life [2]. Seen in this light, even the earliest book in Msgr. Wippel’s collection (printed in 1476, some two centuries after Aquinas’s death) is too recent to contribute anything unique to Msgr. Wippel’s efforts to understand the mind of Aquinas. Similarly, the editions of Augustine, Peter Lombard, and Anselm are too recent to tell us anything unique about either the minds of their authors or the way these works were understood in Aquinas’s day. On the other hand, the later volumes in the collection, printed between 1569 and 1718, are far too early to reflect modern scholarship. No wonder some of Msgr. Wippel’s colleagues have admitted puzzlement over his desire to collect the volumes at all!
While these books were not integral to Msgr. Wippel’s own research, he recognized their historical significance and their potential to contribute to research of other kinds. So, what can we learn from them?
Unsurprisingly, part of the answer lies in the text each item contains. The addition, removal, and editing of prefaces, introductions, commentaries, and notes all shed light on the ways in which a given text was understood in a particular historical moment and place. Thus, while Msgr. Wippel’s editions do not help us understand the mind of Aquinas, they may very well help us understand the minds of some of his readers.
The text is only a partial answer, however. When we work with antiquarian books, it is important to remember that the information contained in the text of the volume is not the only information the volume contains. We can also derive historical insight from the date and place of publication; the manner in which the text is printed; and annotations, inscriptions, bindings, and other evidence of ownership. All of these contribute to our understanding of the role and significance of a particular book (both as a text and as an object) and to the ways that role and significance may have shifted over time.
Historians of philosophy and theology are often interested to note the timing and distribution of early printed editions like those in Msgr. Wippel’s collection. Fifteenth-century publishers, like their 21st-century counterparts, endeavored to print books that would sell. Thus, the fact that a particular work was printed at a particular place and time informs our understanding of the desirability of and interest in that work or author in that historical context.
For many historians of the book, the eight volumes of Msgr. Wippel’s collection printed before 1501 are of particular interest. Known as incunabula (from the Latin for swaddling clothes or cradle), these items represent Europe’s earliest experiments with printing books. Some features of these volumes will seem very familiar to modern readers; others are evidence of techniques and practices that eventually fell from favor or never gained widespread popularity. Msgr. Wippel’s books illustrate the explorations of the fledgling print industry in their hand-drawn decorative capitals, woodcut title pages, and even the typefaces the printers selected for the text.
Antiquarian volumes can offer historical insight into the centuries after their publication as well. The bindings often contain information of this kind: historically, book collectors often commissioned custom bindings that reflected their own taste, status, and allegiances. Later owners then sometimes replaced these bindings, either because the old binding was damaged or because it did not suit the new owner’s taste.
Within the book, hand-written annotations to the text may hint at previous owners’ occupations and interests. Generations of book owners also left behind ownership inscriptions, bookplates, and labels which can tell us who owned a book and, sometimes, where the owners lived. Msgr. Wippel added his own name to a blank page at the beginning of most of these volumes, where the next generation of researchers will find it when they view these volumes in the Rare Books Room.
To keep this post brief, a complete list of the items bequeathed to the Rare Books collection by Msgr. Wippel may be found here. Those interested in visiting Rare Books to study them (or any other items in the Rare Books collection) may send an email to lib-rarebooks@cua.edu to arrange an appointment.
Notes:
[1] For more on Msgr. Wippel and his bequest to Special Collections (including the Archive), see our previous post on the topic.
[2] Therese Cory, “John F. Wippel–In Memoriam,” Thomistica, November 7, 2023. https://thomistica.net/news/msgr-wippel-in-memoriam.